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We discussed this in this Governors' meeting and we hit upon the idea -- which I think Roosevelt had already plotted in his mind -- of a possible regional pattern. The New York Port Authority had just gone through, so that there was a treaty between New York State and New Jersey to develop the Port of New York. These adjoining States, these contiguous States which have similar industries and similar population problems, might join together to form systems.

The interesting thing is, however, that we talked about unemployment insurance and we talked about old-age insurance, as insurance, and we talked about it for four mortal days. Paul Douglas of Chicago, then a professor of social subjects at the University of Chicago and now a Senator in Congress, was the guiding hand as the secretary of this conference. We ended up with a proposal to think of some form of unemployment insurance on a regional basis. Well, that was as much as you could do in the winter of 1932.

In the spring of 1932, Franklin Roosevelt had gone out to Utah to the Conference of Governors. He was, already, of course, sub rosa, a candidate for the Presidency of the United States -- although he hadn't been nominated. Therefore, his action, I may say, was both brave and daring, and at the same time it was subtly attractive to the voter. He made a speech which was full of pleasant hyperbole of one sort or another -- flattery to various Governors -- but at one point he began to discuss the great problems now facing this country, and he spoke about unemployment. Then he said, "I am for unemployment insurance but not for the dole."

Until we heard those words come over the wires, I wasn't sure he was going to say he was for unemployment insurance. I was afraid he was going to say he was against the dole, and nothing else. I wasn't sure he would come through but he did. And that, of course, was the first time he had ever committed himself as far as that. It created a great interest and a great enthusiasm among the voters, which he was not slow to catch on to. He had that kind of a mind, you know; he could feel the public pulse, and he cared about the public pulse. This, of course, was great news to most of us, and we bent our energies to getting something into the Democratic national platform. We didn't get much but we got something -- we got the word mentioned.

Unemployment was mentioned as a great and outstanding problem of the United States in the year 1932, and the Democratic Party platform included a clause which said it was a problem. They promised to study the causes of unemployment -- as though anybody hadn't studied them in years.

They promised to have a committee to study the causes of unemployment, and to study and look into the whole matter of unemployment insurance. But it was a very weak clause which our friends were quick to pick up, telling us that we had betrayed them and all that kind of thing. Not having appeared before the committee that was drafting the platform, they didn't know how bad the platform might otherwise have been on this subject. Most of the committee members seemed to be determined that there should be nothing said about unemployment that would frighten people away from the Democratic Party.

But, you may remember, it didn't frighten the people at all. Actually, nothing frightened them. They would have voted for anybody who was running, and for any platform because they wanted d change. Everybody was depressed; every industry was depressed; so every individual had some sort of stake in the situation. Thus, we got the first public mention and the first public commitment to do something or other about unemployment -- at least to study it. This was a feather in our cap. When I say flour" cap, I mean the caps of those who had already committed themselves in this direction; who had already determined to help each other find some way out of the situation and get some form of social insurance in this country.

At any rate, that was the situation when Roosevelt was elected and we went to Washington.

Before I was appointed, I had a little conversation with Roosevelt in which I said perhaps he didn't want me to be the Secretary, of Labor because if I were, I should want to do this, and this, and this. Among the things I wanted to do was find a way of getting unemployment insurance, old-age insurance, and health insurance. I remember he looked so startled, and he said, "Well, do you think it can be done?"

I said, "I don't know." He said, Well, there are constitutional problems, aren't there?" "Yes, very severe constitutional problems," I said. "But what have we been elected for except to solve the constitutional problems? Lots of other problems have been solved by the people of the United States, and there is no reason why this one shouldn't be solved."

"Well," he said, "do you think you can do it?" "I don't know, " I said. But I wanted to try. "I want to know if I have your authorization. I won't ask you to promise anything." He looked at me and nodded wisely. "All right," he said, "I will authorize you to try, and if you succeed, that's fine."